The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may or may not constitute prior art.
In various industries, for example the automotive industry and appliance industry, it is known to apply an adhesive or a sealant composition to a product or part during the manufacturing process in order to seal seams, provide structural support, and/or provide vibration damping properties. For example, during the assembly of an automobile, sealants and adhesives are often used within or between the joints between separate components in order to seal the separate components together.
However, the application of traditional sealants and adhesives to parts can be labor intensive and costly to install due to the difficulty in positioning the sealants and adhesives relative to the parts. In addition, traditional sealants currently in use require heating or exposure to moisture after application in order to properly cure and/or seal to a substrate surface on the part. Where such traditional sealants are used in automotive applications, the sealants must be cured by passing the part through an oven to raise the temperature of the sealant and part during the manufacturing process. If the sealant is not properly cured during the manufacturing process, the sealant may not properly seal or adhere to the part to which it has been applied and/or may be smeared onto adjacent surfaces causing contamination and/or an unsightly appearance.
One solution is to provide a composition that expands upon heating to assure a good seal to the substrate, as disclosed in commonly assigned PCT Application No. PCT/US07/75752, entitled “Curable Sealing Method and Foamable Composition”. However, oftentimes gaskets and seals are needed on substrates, such as plastics, that are not capable of withstanding high temperatures. Accordingly, there is a need in the art for a curable sealing method and foamed composition which is capable of bonding to substrates and/or sealing seams, which may be cured without the need for heat or moisture, and which is delivered in a form that provides expansion without heating.